Heartbreak for Emma Raducanu after Queen’s Club final defeat

It’s a big day for British tennis as Emma Raducanu features in her biggest final since she stormed to US Open victory five years ago. In the first leg of this week’s double header between England and Croatia (the World Cup leg kicks off on Wednesday 9pm BST) the British No 1 will face Donna Vekic for the Queen’s title. After disappointing results in the clay-court swing – first-round defeats in Strasbourg and the French Open – Raducanu has been ruthless on grass, reaching the final without dropping a set. She played two matches on Saturday as rain hampered play on Friday, but powered through her quarter-final and semi-final in quick succession. She beat Kamilla Rakhimova 6-3, 7-5, before returning to Andy Murray arena just two and a half hours later to dispatch American teenager Iva Jovic 6-2, 6-2. The rain was not the only challenge Raducanu had to overcome. She survived an injury scare in the fifth game of the second set of her quarter-final, needing her left thigh strapped after slipping on the grass while changing direction. Though she went off court for treatment, she was able to close out the match when she returned, and only wore a small patch of strapping for her semi-final.